The present invention is directed toward a hand tool and more particularly toward a hand tool for installing clips to abutting edges of ducts and for crimping the clips to secure the ducts together.
As is well known in the art, duct work is utilized in many different types of installations for air conditioning, ventilation systems and the like. A common type of duct system utilized today is comprised of sections of rectangularly shaped tubular members having flanges extending totally around the peripheral edges thereof. Sections of the duct work are joined together by mating the flanges and by then bolting the flanges together and/or by applying clips on the flanges to maintain the same together.
The clips which are presently used to fasten the flanges together are elongated channel-shaped sheet metal members having a length of approximately five inches. They are conventionally installed by manually placing them over the adjoining edges of the duct work around the flanges and then hammering them into place. The clips are then further hammered in order to crimp the sides of the clips around the flanges.
The conventional method of installing the clips has not proven to be satisfactory. It has been found that the clips cannot be uniformly and adequately crimped using this prior art method. Furthermore, there are certain installations which due to space limitations make it impossible to reach the clips with a hammer, thereby making it impossible to crimp the same.